Part 4 (2/2)

Peter Rabbit was in trouble He had got into ets into mischief, he wished that he hadn't

The worst of it was that he was a long way from his home in the dear Old Briar-patch, and he didn't kno he ever could get back there again Where was he? Why, in the stone wall on one side of Far peach orchard How Peter blessed the old stone wall in which he had found a safe hiding place! Bowser had hung around nearly all night, so that Peter had not dared to try to go hoht, and Peter kneould not be safe to put his nose outside

Peter orried, so worried that he couldn't go to sleep as he usually does in the daytime So he sat hidden in the old wall and waited and watched By and by he saw Farmer Brown and Farht away they saw the mischief which Peter had done, and he could tell by the sound of their voices that they were very, very angry They went away, but before long they were back again, and all day long Peter watched the peach trees

Peter grew so curious that he forgot all about his troubles and how far away froht to co

Just as jolly, round, red Mr Sun started to go to bed behind the Purple Hills, Farmer Brown and his boy started back to the house Faruess that will fix hiht Peter ”Who”

[Illustration: _All around the trunk of the tree rapped wire netting_]

He waited just as long as he could When all was still, and the un to make shadows of the trees on the snow, Peter very cautiously crept out of his hiding place Bowser the Hound was nowhere in sight, and everything was as quiet and peaceful as it had been when he first caht before Peter had fully s would take him, but his dreadful curiosity insisted that first heto the young peach trees

So Peter hurried over to the nearest tree All around the trunk of the tree, froher than Peter could reach, rapped wire netting Peter couldn't get so much as a nibble of the delicious bark He hadn't intended to take any, for he had et any, he wanted somewas quiet He would try the next tree, and then he would go home

But the next tree rapped ire Peter hesitated, looked around, turned to go hoht before, hesitated again, and then hurried over to the third tree It was protected just like the others Then Peter forgot all about going home He wanted some of that delicious bark, and he ran froo

At last, way down at the end of the orchard, Peter found a tree that had no wire around it ”They ht, and his eyes sparkled All around on the snoere a lot of shi+ny little wires, but Peter didn't notice the peach tree He hopped right into the middle of the wires, and then, just as he reached up to take the first bite of bark, he felt sos

XV

Peter Rabbit Is Caught in a Snare

When Peter Rabbit, reaching up to nibble the bark of one of Far at one of his hind legs, he was so startled that he ju this, he fell flat on his face The thing on his hind leg had tightened and held hi there in the snow, he kicked and struggled with all his rew that hateful thing on his leg! Finally he grew too tired to kick anythat held hi, but it didn't pull when he lay still

When he had grown a little cal which held hi like one of the blackberry vines he had soht and shi+ny, and had no branches or tiny prickers, and one end was fastened to a stake Peter tried to bite off the shi+ny thing, but even his great, sharp front teeth couldn't cut it

Then Peter knehat it was It ire! It was a snare which Farht into because he had been so greedy for the bark of the young peach tree that he had not used his eyes to look out for danger

Oh, how Peter Rabbit did wish that he had not been so curious to knohat Farht hoet onetears rolled down Peter's cheeks What should he do? What could he do? For a long ti to do At last he thought of the stake to which that hateful as fastened The stake was of wood, and Peter's teeth would cut wood Peter's heart gave a great leap of hope, and he began at once to dig away the snow fronaw the stake in two

Peter had been hard at work on the stake a long tih, when he heard a loud sniff down at the other end of the orchard He looked up to see--whom do you think? Why, Bowser the Hound! He hadn't seen Peter yet, but he had already found Peter's tracks, and it would be but a few minutes before he found Peter himself

Poor Peter Rabbit! There wasn't ti off the stake What could he do? He htened ju at his leg Just as before, he was thrown flat on his face He scraain, only to be thrown just as before Just then Bowser the Hound saw hireat roar

Peter made one more frantic jump Snap! The stake had broken!

Peter pitched forward on his head, turned a somersault, and scrambled to his feet He was free at last! That is, he could run, but after hied a piece of the stake

How Peter did run! It was hard work, for you know he had to drag that piece of stake after him But he did it, and just in time he crawled into the old stone wall on one side of the orchard, while Bowser the Hound barked his disappointment to the moon